Battle of Cherbourg (1864)
Confederate States Navy |combatant2= United States Navy |commander1= Raphael Semmes |commander2= John Winslow |strength1=1 sloop-of-war |strength2=1 sloop-of-war |casualties1=1 sloop-of-war sunk, ~40 killed, unknown wounded, ~70 captured |casualties2=1 sloop-of-war damaged, 1 killed, 2 wounded |notes= *38 to 41 Confederates were rescued by the yacht Deerhound and escaped capture. }} The Battle of Cherbourg, or sometimes the Battle off Cherbourg or the Sinking of CSS Alabama, was a single ship action fought during the American Civil War between a United States Navy ship and a Confederate States Navy ship in June 1864, off Cherbourg, France. Background After five successful commerce raiding missions in the Atlantic Ocean, [[CSS Alabama|CSS Alabama]] turned into Cherbourg Harbor on June 11, 1864. The rebel sloop-of-war was commanded by Captain Raphael Semmes, formerly of [[CSS Sumter|CSS Sumter]]. It was Captain Semmes intention to dry dock his ship and receive repairs at the French port. The Confederate Navy vessel was crewed by about 170 men and armed with six 32 pound (15 kg) cannons, one 110 pound (50 kg) cannon and one 68 pound (31 kg) gun. The Alabama had been pursued for two years by the screw sloop-of-war [[USS Kearsarge (1861)|USS Kearsarge]], under Captain John Winslow. The Kearsarge was armed with two 11 inch (280 mm) smoothbore Dahlgren guns, four 32 pound guns and one 30 pound Parrott rifle. She was manned by around 150 sailors and officers. Kearsarge had armor-clad, chain cable triced in tiers along her port and starboard midsections. This armor protection gave the Union warship a good advantage over the rebel raider. On June 14, Kearsarge finally caught up with Alabama as she was receiving repairs. Kearsarge did not attack, instead she waited, initiating a blockade of CSS Alabama in Cherbourg Harbor. Union Captain Winslow telegraphed [[USS St. Louis|USS St. Louis]] to request her assistance. Confederate Captain Semmes used the time to drill his men for the coming battle. On June 19, CSS Alabama, with nowhere else to go, ran up the Stars and Bars and exited the harbor to attack Kearsarge. She was escorted by a French Navy vessel whose mission was to ensure that the ensuing battle occurred outside the French harbor. Battle Men aboard USS Kearsarge spotted the incoming Confederate raider and turned about to take the impending battle out of French territorial waters. Once out, she turned around again, hoisted the U.S. Navy Jack, and lined up for a broadside. Captain Winslow ordered his gunners to hold their fire until the range closed. CSS Alabama fired the first shots. They are not known to have hit. Eventually Keargsarge was under way and the range closed to within 1,000 yards (900 m) when she fired her first shot. The two warships manoeuvered on opposite courses throughout the battle. Kearsarge and Alabama made seven spiraling circles around each other's ship, moving southwest in water moving at a current of 3-knots. Both Captain Semmes and Captain Winslow attempted to cross each others bow, hoping to inflict heavy raking fire. The battle continued in this manner for several minutes, in the meantime, on the French Coast, hundreds of Cherbourg citizens watched the battle as it slowly drew closer to a Union victory. Kearsarge s armor clad sustained two hits during the engagement. The first shell, a 32 pounder, struck within the starboard gangway. The shot cut part of the chain armor and dented the metal hull underneath. The second shot was again a 32 pounder that detonated caused further damage to the chain armor, and broke a link of the chain armor. Both hits struck the chain armor at just above five feet over the waterline. The gunnery of USS Kearsarge was reportedly more accurate than of the Confederates, she fired slowly well-aimed shots while Alabama fired rapidly. CSS Alabama fired a total of over 370 rounds during the fighting, it is not known how many Kearsarge fired but it is known that she fired much less than the rebels did. Eventually after just over an hour of exchanging artillery fire, Alabama had received shot-holes beneath the waterline from Kearsarge s Dahlgren guns and began to sink. Captain Semmes struck the Confederate colors but still the Kearsarge continued firing until a white flag was seen, raised by one of the rebel sailors with his hand. The battle was over so Captain Semmes sent his remaining dinghy to Captain Winslow, to ask for aid. During the battle, over forty rebel sailors were killed in action or drowned. Another seventy or so were picked up by Kearsarge. Thirty or so were rescued by the Deerhound, a British yacht, which Captain Winslow asked to help evacuate Alabama s crew. Captain Semmes and fourteen of his officers were among the sailors rescued by Deerhound. Instead of delivering the captured rebels to Kearsarge, the Deerhound set a course for Southampton, thus enabling Captain Semmes' escape. This act severely angered the Kearsarges crew, who begged their Captain to allow them to open fire on the back-stabbing British. Captain Winslow would not allow this though so the Confederates got away and avoided imprisonment. Three men were wounded aboard the United States vessel, one of whom died the following day. Aftermath For many years after the battle, Confederate Captain Semmes stated that he would never have chosen to test USS Kearsarge had he known of her armor clad protection. CSS Alabama destroyed or captured dozens of Union merchant vessels during her Atlantic cruises, when word of Alabama s sinking reached the northeastern United States, many Northerners were joyful. Edouard Manet produced a painting of the fight, The Battle of the ''Kearsarge and the Alabama,'' now at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. He also did a painting, The ''Kearsarge,'' now at Boulogne. American marine artist Xanthus Smith painted six versions of the naval battle. The most famous of these, a massive work exhibited at the 1876 Centennial Exposition, is in the collection of the Union League of Philadelphia. Gallery File:USS Kearsarge (1861).jpg|USS Kearsarge, in an 1861 photograph. File:AlabamaSinkingHarpers23July1864.jpg|''Sinking of the CSS Alabama'', engraving, Harper's Weekly Magazine, 23 July 1864. File:CSS Alabama battle with USS Kearsarge.jpg|''The Fight between the Alabama and the Kearsarge'', 1864 engraving. File:CSS 'Alabama'.JPG|''The Sinking of the CSS Alabama'', unidentified artist. File:Lebreton engraving-01.jpg|Engraving by Louis Le Breton (by 1866). File:GAR 1893 - Kearsage.jpg|Replica of the USS Kearsarge on display at the 1893 Grand Army of the Republic national convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. File:US Navy 030204-N-0000X-001 This 1922 artwork depicts the sinking of the Confederate ship CSS Alabama.jpg|''The Kearsarge and the Alabama'', by Xanthus Smith (1922), Franklin D. Roosevelt collection, FDR Library, Hyde Park, NY. File:USS Kearsarge in Battle.jpg|''USS Kearsarge in Battle'', by Jo Davidson (1936), Franklin D. Roosevelt collection, FDR Library, Hyde Park, NY. File:CSSAlabama.jpg|''CSS Alabama'', in a 1961 painting by J.W. Schmidt. File:Joachim Pease poster.jpg|U.S. Navy recruiting poster, 1970s. References *Semmes, Raphael, Admiral, CSN, Memoirs of Service Afloat During the War Between the States, Blue & Grey Press, 1987, ISBN 1555211771. *Hearn, Chester G., Gray Raiders of the Sea, Louisiana State Press, 1996, ISBN 0807121142. *Luraghi, Raimondo, A History of the Confederate Navy, U. S. Naval Institute Press, 1996, ISBN 1557505276. *Marvel, William, The Alabama & the Kearsarge: The Sailor's War, University of North Carolina Press, 1996, ISBN 0807822949. *Still, Jr., William N.; Taylor, John M.; Delaney, Norman C., Raiders and Blockaders, the American Civil War Afloat, Brassy's, Inc., 1998, ISBN 1574881647. *Bowcock, Andrew, CSS Alabama, Anatomy of a Confederate Raider, Chatham Publishing, London, 2002, ISBN 1861761890. *Gindlesperger, James, Fire on the Water: The USS Kearsarge and the CSS Alabama, Burd Street Press, 2005, ISBN 978-1572493780. *Secretary of the Navy, Sinking of the Alabama—Destruction of the Alabama by the Kearsarge, annual report in the library of the Naval Historical Center, 1864, Washington, D.C., Navy Yard. *Delaney, Norman C. (1973). "Old Beeswax": Raphael Semmes of the Alabama. Harrisburg, PA, Vol. 12, #8, December, 1973, Civil War Times Illustrated, No ISSN. *Madaus, H. Michael, Rebel Flags Afloat: A Survey of the Surviving Flags of the Confederate States Navy, Revenue Service, and Merchant Marine. Winchester, MA (80-page special edition of The Flag Bulletin, #115), 1986, Flag Research Center, ISSN 0015-3370. *Roberts, Arthur C., M.D. Reconstructing USS Kearsarge, 1864, Silver Springs, MD., Vol. 44, #4; Vol. 45, #s 1, 2, and 3, 1999, 2000, Nautical Research Journal, ISSN 0738-7245. *Uncredited reporter, Confederate Flag Flies At Pulaski, Savannah, GA. (Depression-era newspaper article on W. P. Brooks' rescued CSS Alabama ensign being flown as part of a ceremony held on the parade ground at Fort Pulaski, GA), Savannah News-Press, printed around 1937. Category:Naval battles of the American Civil War Category:Union victories of the American Civil War Category:Maritime incidents in 1864 Category:War art fr:Combat naval à Cherbourg (1864)